Preview: ADO Den Haag vs Fortuna Sittard - prediction, team news, lineups

ADO Den Haag will host Fortuna Sittard at the WerkTalent Stadion in The Hague in the Eredivisie on Sunday.

The newly promoted hosts sit second from bottom of the table with one point from four matches, while the visitors from Limburg travel north in sixth place having already collected seven points from a possible 12.

It is the first Eredivisie meeting between the two clubs since ADO Den Haag's relegation five years ago, and Robin Peter's side will be desperate to turn Sunday's home advantage, only their second at this level so far this season, into a first league win of the campaign.

Match preview

Robin Peter's side have made a difficult return to the Eredivisie after a five-year absence, taking just one point from their opening four matches and sitting 16th in the table.

Their solitary point arrived away at Feyenoord last weekend, when Nigel Thomas and Sekou Sylla scored either side of half time to put ADO 2-0 up inside the opening hour of the match.

Ayase Ueda pulled a goal back in the 62nd minute before Anis Hadj Moussa curled a superb effort beyond Kilian Nikiema in the 72nd minute to level the match at 2-2, denying De Ooievaars a first win of the season but offering clear evidence that Peter's counter-attacking approach can trouble stronger opposition.

Before that comeback point, ADO had lost three matches in a row, going down 2-0 away at AZ Alkmaar, 4-1 at home to FC Groningen and 3-1 away at Go Ahead Eagles, a run that has left them with only four goals scored and 11 conceded, the joint-fewest goals of any side in the division.

Nikiema has been one of the few consistent performers in a difficult start, averaging around six saves per match, the highest figure of any goalkeeper in the Eredivisie so far this season.

Sunday's match will be only ADO's second home fixture of the campaign, following the 4-1 defeat to Groningen on August 16, and Peter will be hoping the WerkTalent Stadion crowd can help recreate some of the atmosphere that carried his side to last season's Eerste Divisie title.

Fortuna Sittard travel to the capital in solid form under Danny Buijs, sitting sixth in the table with seven points from four matches.

Buijs, who is starting his third season in charge at Fortuna Sittard, knows the home ground better than most of his players, having made 53 appearances for ADO Den Haag during a playing career that also included spells at Feyenoord and FC Groningen.

The Fortunezen have won two of their four league matches so far, beginning with a 2-2 draw away at champions PSV Eindhoven before beating SC Cambuur 3-1 at home and then losing 0-2 to AZ Alkmaar, a match in which they were reduced to 10 men.

Buijs's side responded to that setback in style, coming from behind to win 3-2 away at FC Groningen on August 28, with Mohammed Ihattaren opening the scoring in the 12th minute before David van der Werff levelled matters in the 19th minute.

Lequincio Zeefuik restored Fortuna's lead in the 28th minute and Anthony Descotte added a third in the 72nd minute, and although Justin Hubner's own goal in the 87th minute set up a nervy finish, Buijs's side held on for the win.

Zeefuik has been Fortuna's most productive attacker with two goals already this season, while Edouard Michut sits top of the club's assist chart with two of his own, including the pass that set up Zeefuik's goal at Groningen, and Ihattaren, once one of Dutch football's most talked-about young talents, has rediscovered some form under Buijs.

ADO Den Haag Eredivisie form:

Fortuna Sittard Eredivisie form:

Team News

Peter will be without three players for the visit of Fortuna Sittard, with midfielder Cameron Peupion, forward Donat Barany and Jonas Jensen-Abbew all sidelined through injury.

Kilian Nikiema is certain to continue in goal after his string of saves helped salvage a point at Feyenoord, while Sekou Sylla, who scored in that match, is expected to keep his place at the back.

Buijs must do without Ole Romeny, who is serving a suspension, for the trip to The Hague.

Kristoffer Peterson, Ivan Marquez, Siebe Wylin and Sven Simons are all also unavailable through injury, leaving Buijs with limited options in both defense and attack.

Despite those absences, Fortuna are expected to name largely the same team that won at Groningen, with Edouard Michut continuing to pull the strings in midfield and Lequincio Zeefuik leading the line alongside Anthony Descotte.

ADO Den Haag possible starting lineup:

Nikiema; Raterink, Hokke, Mulder, Sylla; Kilo, Jimenez; Thomas, Rottier, Van Mieghem; Eduardo

Fortuna Sittard possible starting lineup:

Branderhorst; Pinto, Guth, Hubner, Dahlhaus; Michut, Brittijn, Zand; Ihattaren, Zeefuik, Descotte

We say: ADO Den Haag 1-2 Fortuna Sittard

Fortuna Sittard's attacking depth, with Zeefuik, Michut and Ihattaren all involved in goals this season, should give them the edge against a Den Haag defence that has already shipped 11 goals in four matches, the second-worst record in the division so far.

ADO Den Haag's home crowd and Nikiema's shot-stopping form give the hosts a fighting chance of taking something from the game, but Fortuna's greater composure in the final third should be enough to see Buijs's side pick up a fourth win in five visits to this fixture's recent history.

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